I totally agree that Baan is a very powerful planeswalker. My point was that splashing blue for him in the B/W shell isn't really worth it. Not being able to play a turn 2 Grasp or Transgress really hurts in certain matchups, especially on the draw, and Sorin and Nixilis both draw you cards, Lil and Gideon both control the board, and plenty of other cards give you incidental life gain, so Baan is really adding nothing new to the deck while weakening the consistency of it.
Glimmer of Genius is a very powerful card draw spell.... when you care about energy. If you don't care about energy, it still is a solid card draw, if slightly over costed. At this point I'm still wary if the energy payoffs are worth the effort of building a deck that gains energy. Most energy gaining spells are incidental, so they're usually solid cards on their own, but I can't justify playing Die Young over Grasp when Grasp has so much more raw power. Maybe there is a U/W energy based control deck with Aethersquall Ancient and Consulate Surveillance, I'm not sure, but it's certainly worth testing.
Personally, the card I'm most excited about for blue is Revolutionary Rebuff, which is exactly what blue needed to establish itself as the "draw go" control color. A turn 2 rebuff, followed by a turn 3 Void Shatter puts you firmly in the driver's seat of any game, allowing you to dictate the pace and keep your opponent on their heels. I'd be more inclined to drop all energy cards in favor of just more powerful cards, only have creatures like Spell Queller, Archangel Avacyn, and Torrential Gearhulk, and have all instant speed removal, card draw, and permission, with possibly some number of Fumigate somewhere in the 75. To me that seems like the U/W control deck to start testing.
Also, Shaheen is crazy. Double black on turn 2, with double white and double blue on turn 5 is never going to work with the mana we have, unless I'm missing something. (would need 20 black sources, 15 white sources, and 15 blue sources, or there about)
Honestly I would love to play Dovin in a BWu list, but the more I thought about it the more I thought Nahiri is better in that slot going Mardu instead. It's the same BW list with the red splash for just Nahiri. Her -2 is better in an aggressive meta that might be full of vehicles and UR Fevered Visions and just has better applications in an unknown meta. Her +2 is card advantage. Her ultimate can fetch Emrakul or a Gearhulk.
Oath of Liliana into Nahiri just sounds much more back breaking against aggro than Dovin anyways, not to mention threatens to end the game when she ultimates.
I can't get behind all these U/W/x decks with Fumigate and Spell Queller. Why would you want to choose between letting the board fill with creatures, or freeing the Chandra? Sounds like a recipe for disaster.
I think Esper or Jeskai are better than Mardu because, in my opinion, blue is the best sb color. Maybe in the first match Mardu is great, but in the second one the decks with blue have a lot of tools to win the match: negate, rebuff, the new counter for 1 that target collorless spells, etc. That's why I think esper and jeskai are better. If you play jeskai, use Nahiri in place off Dovin because -2 exiles enchantments, meanwhile in esper you have Ungished Unmaking to deal with they. I preffer Esper.
Yeah Esper has better sideboard cards, but like I said in an aggressive meta in the early weeks after rotation counterspells aren't too useful until the meta takes shape about three weeks in. Once everything settles down Esper could be the way to go.
Also I'd still be playing Anguished Unmaking, but I rather have Nahiri remove Fevered Visions than paying three life when their deck is beating and burning my face in.
Thank you so much for the suggestions! And you are right, I been thinking about it and I have new ideas. In this list I put 33 spells so I still have a single slot for a 3 cmc counter or 27 lands. Last esper control I played used 27 lands and it was awesome, never stuck on lands (Seth Manfield's Esper Control from SOI Pro Tour). By the way, that deck just used 4 anticipate a no more drawing spells because all PW he used gave card adventage. I'm thinking the same as here: Dovin, Ob, Jace and Sorin gives me extracards.
Digging/Draw:
4 Anticipate
2 Glimmer of Genious
2 Succumb to Temptation
Valesantafe, just a few comments on your deck that I'm sure others can jump in on...
The thing you have to remember when developing a deck for a new rotation is that old decks used cards available, and they may not be the best choice now. For example, just because Seth Manfield ran 4 Anticipates doesn't mean that it's a good choice - it was just the best at the time. If you look at the Shaheen Soorani list I posted yesterday, he actually runs 4 Take Inventory and no Anticipate. Where I play, it's far better to take your early turns killing things (Murder, Grasp of Darkness, Essence Extraction) than holding up the blue mana for an early draw spell, so for me, I prefer Glimmer of Genius. I'm also a fan of a single Confirm Suspicions - it gives an extra counterspell, but also gives 3 cards when you have spare mana.
Cataclysmic Gearhulk I think is a bit of a mistake, and shouldn't be here over certainly the blue one, and maybe even the black one. Yes, it does a good Tragic Arrogance impression, but the key difference between TA and Gearhulk is that the opponent gets to choose what they keep.
Finally, as I mentioned in one of my last few posts, I've not been a fan of Dovin Baan. He's only card advantage while you have enough loyalty to tick him down, whereas Sorin, Ob Nix and Jace all give it to you as you tick up. Therefore, I'm currently trying 2 Sorin and a Dovin Baan, rather than 1/2 the other way. Jace may be a good inclusion though - I'll have to try putting him in and seeing what happens.
All in all, I think that between you, I and Draw_gone, we are getting close to a list that could be pretty handy, and should just need some tweaks as the format develops. However, I am fully expecting to have a hard time for the first month or so, as the aggro decks will be out in full force, and aggro always stands a better chance against control. I find that it's a high chance to lose game 1, then if we stack the removal game 2 (but rarely, if ever remove draw spells when sideboarding) we can just kill everything, wait for them to run out of steam, then turn the corner with a Gearhulk and swing in for the win.
It almost seems to me that a mono-black control list, with splashes solely for Fumigate, the planeswalkers and draw spells could be the way to move...
you are right! I was thinkg on Anticipate because helps digging a lot if you are stuck on lands on the first turns, always helps me out. But maybe you are right, if I just focus on t2 and t3 on black removal and maybe a blue counter (Negate to Fevered Visions for example), I wont any hurry to play a Glimmer on turn 4. I see you point, maybe it will work with -4Anticipateand +2 Glimmer of Genious(playset) and maybe 2 more counter spells. By the way, how many lands do you think I should run? I preffer this list
As he promised, Shaheen Soorani posted a UB Reactive list a couple of hours back, and described it as "the most fun to play out of the control decks he's posted so far". I actually think this is where I'm going to start, rather than desperately try to hunt down the cards for Esper (which, admittedly, will be only Fumigates and a couple of the walkers other than the cards I need for this list!).
There's some comments on his posting over the choice of 4 Torrential Gearhulks, and whether a 2/2 split with Noxious is better, but I can see the appeal to basically increasing all your counters and all your removal by 4... Also, I'm not the biggest fan of Liliana here. Yes, she has the potential to take over the late game, and possibility to return Gearhulks, but otherwise she's just a removal spell for 3. Maybe could be better to add something else here, like Essence Extraction, 4th copies of Murder or Ruinous Path, maybe Engulf the Shore/Flaying Tendrils for the anticipation of aggro, or just more draw/counters...
Yes, I like it. It's strong. But I still wanna try an Esper. I think is not impossible to splash W for Fumigate, Anguished Unmaking and Sorin, Grim Nemesis. Also for the sb Fragmentize.
I also think than Liliana is good, but I could cut her and add another things as you say!
Jokes aside, I am looking for a UW base and hoping to add a 3rd color - although not Esper, as I don't have a zillion Lilianas to splash around decks (the ones I have are in Jund Delirium) and am NOT buying MORE.
U don't need Liliana for a Esper Control, It's good! but some people preffers more Ruinous Path or Murder for example.
Phew..I thought the rule round here was "I HAVE to play all Planeswalkers, regardless of synergy in the deck or not".
If that was the case I would cram Chandra, Pyrogenius in LOL. But I like your suggestion..
There's is no way you can simply call Liliana, The Last Hope a 3 cmc removal, she is so much more than that. Even in a creatureless deck, her value is great, especially if you are running Oath of Jace or Oath of Liliana. She can repeatedly kill 1 toughness creatures, and in certain aggro / spirit decks she's going to get anywheres from 1-3 creatures. She controls the board very effectively starting on turn 3, remember how powerful Jace, Telepath Unbound was when you got to flip him by turn 3, he just kept upticking, basically removing a creature each turn, allowing you to cast a removal on a bigger, must deal with threat. upticking Lil on Sylvan Advocate lets you spend your mana on removing Tireless Tracker on the same turn is how you start to turn the corner. Not only that, but her ultimate is always a win, I've never lost a game once she ults, and I do not believe I've seen a game where a player looses after Lil Ult, which means she's a very important, and hard to deal with threat by your opponent, which means they are wasting resources trying to kill her. Once you throw a few large, powerful creatures into the mix, like maybe a Noxious Gearhulk even in the SB, her value cannot be overstated.
There's is no way you can simply call Liliana, The Last Hope a 3 cmc removal, she is so much more than that. Even in a creatureless deck, her value is great, especially if you are running Oath of Jace or Oath of Liliana. She can repeatedly kill 1 toughness creatures, and in certain aggro / spirit decks she's going to get anywheres from 1-3 creatures. She controls the board very effectively starting on turn 3, remember how powerful Jace, Telepath Unbound was when you got to flip him by turn 3, he just kept upticking, basically removing a creature each turn, allowing you to cast a removal on a bigger, must deal with threat. upticking Lil on Sylvan Advocate lets you spend your mana on removing Tireless Tracker on the same turn is how you start to turn the corner. Not only that, but her ultimate is always a win, I've never lost a game once she ults, and I do not believe I've seen a game where a player looses after Lil Ult, which means she's a very important, and hard to deal with threat by your opponent, which means they are wasting resources trying to kill her. Once you throw a few large, powerful creatures into the mix, like maybe a Noxious Gearhulk even in the SB, her value cannot be overstated.
I didn't say it's bad, the card is awesome! But I think you could cut off instead of some removal if you don't have the money for the Lilis! If I would have the money I would buy it, no doubts! Sorry if my point was confused
There's is no way you can simply call Liliana, The Last Hope a 3 cmc removal, she is so much more than that. Even in a creatureless deck, her value is great, especially if you are running Oath of Jace or Oath of Liliana. She can repeatedly kill 1 toughness creatures, and in certain aggro / spirit decks she's going to get anywheres from 1-3 creatures. She controls the board very effectively starting on turn 3, remember how powerful Jace, Telepath Unbound was when you got to flip him by turn 3, he just kept upticking, basically removing a creature each turn, allowing you to cast a removal on a bigger, must deal with threat. upticking Lil on Sylvan Advocate lets you spend your mana on removing Tireless Tracker on the same turn is how you start to turn the corner. Not only that, but her ultimate is always a win, I've never lost a game once she ults, and I do not believe I've seen a game where a player looses after Lil Ult, which means she's a very important, and hard to deal with threat by your opponent, which means they are wasting resources trying to kill her. Once you throw a few large, powerful creatures into the mix, like maybe a Noxious Gearhulk even in the SB, her value cannot be overstated.
I didn't say it's bad, the card is awesome! But I think you could cut off instead of some removal if you don't have the money for the Lilis! If I would have the money I would buy it, no doubts! Sorry if my point was confused
what do you think of Aether Theorist?
Theorycrafting: it seems like it would work amazingly with aether hub and other cards post board.
I'm considering going down to 24 lands for it... but I'm unsure if that's correct.
would appreciate thoughts on Aether Theorist.
Traditionally, starfish type creatures have not seen play in standard. but with energy... it seems interesting.
I'm not seeing a solid reason to include blue outside of a splash for card advantage.
I'm sorry, but this statement has been rattling around in my brain all day. You don't see a solid reason to put blue in a control deck? Really?
Blue will be good for control in this format, but I don't think splashing it is worth stretching the manabase. In my opinion, either go for blue or don't. I like my U/W control, and I like by B/W control. But I don't see gaining enough from including a third color to justify messing with the mana.
People say "the mana's not that bad" in 3 colors, but either combination has all of the tools without a third color. It's just plain unnecessary to risk a game on color screw.
Week 1 filled with aggro, i find this to be able to battle that. It runs nicly, but been changing around the main baord to find the best combination not sure what works best in main vs side, lot of great cards in the format for a control player. Tell me what you think?
Week 1 filled with aggro, i find this to be able to battle that. It runs nicly, but been changing around the main baord to find the best combination not sure what works best in main vs side, lot of great cards in the format for a control player. Tell me what you think?
Why in the world would you run Gideon's Reproach over Immolating Glare? I get that Reproach hits blockers, but are you really worried about blockers?
I also really don't like Horribly Awry. I'd much rather run Weak Leak (thanks to whoever called it this earlier in the thread, that's my name for it from now on). It's much more versatile and relevant in more matchups.
I think Select for Inspection is better than I have been giving it credit for. I might start testing it.
If you're not running sweepers, you can get away with running spell quellers. They are good in a tempo deck like this and they fly which is HUGE right now.
I'm not seeing a solid reason to include blue outside of a splash for card advantage.
I'm sorry, but this statement has been rattling around in my brain all day. You don't see a solid reason to put blue in a control deck? Really?
Blue will be good for control in this format, but I don't think splashing it is worth stretching the manabase. In my opinion, either go for blue or don't. I like my U/W control, and I like by B/W control. But I don't see gaining enough from including a third color to justify messing with the mana.
People say "the mana's not that bad" in 3 colors, but either combination has all of the tools without a third color. It's just plain unnecessary to risk a game on color screw.
This is so true and I really felt the need to reiterate it. Maybe if the format slows down enough where a turn 2 or 3 plays aren't strictly necessary, it will be worth it to splash other colors, but in the beginning of Kaladesh 2 mana interactions are going to be very important. I'm really not sure what the aggro deck of choice will be, as last format rotation I saw humans everywhere leading up to the release being tested at various spots online, so it was really no surprise when the first SCG tournament had mono white, W/G, and W/U humans making about something like 60%-70% of the meta, but this rotation I don't think will be quite like that. Every variation of burn, including blue and / or black as well as every flavor from hyper aggro to heavy control I've seen out there. I've seen humans, dwarves, equipment, artifacts, and vehicles all being used by mostly R/W for various aggro strategies. I've seen R/G energy strategies ranging from hyper aggro, to topping out with Aetherworks Marvel into Ulamog or Emrakul. I think the start of this format is going to be extremely volatile, so being able to interact early is going to be so very crucial for the first few weeks while the meta figures itself out.
That being said I really believe control is in a strong position. There is a lot of incidental life gain, mostly in white, so grinding opponents out of threats before turning the corner with enough life left to win is very doable. And the fact that Collected Company is gone has had a large impact. Going 1 for 1 against creatures actually slows an opponent down now, letting you get the heavier control engines online, whatever they may be, either something energy base, or planes walkers, or top curve creatures. Either way I think it's going to be an exciting release.
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Glimmer of Genius is a very powerful card draw spell.... when you care about energy. If you don't care about energy, it still is a solid card draw, if slightly over costed. At this point I'm still wary if the energy payoffs are worth the effort of building a deck that gains energy. Most energy gaining spells are incidental, so they're usually solid cards on their own, but I can't justify playing Die Young over Grasp when Grasp has so much more raw power. Maybe there is a U/W energy based control deck with Aethersquall Ancient and Consulate Surveillance, I'm not sure, but it's certainly worth testing.
Personally, the card I'm most excited about for blue is Revolutionary Rebuff, which is exactly what blue needed to establish itself as the "draw go" control color. A turn 2 rebuff, followed by a turn 3 Void Shatter puts you firmly in the driver's seat of any game, allowing you to dictate the pace and keep your opponent on their heels. I'd be more inclined to drop all energy cards in favor of just more powerful cards, only have creatures like Spell Queller, Archangel Avacyn, and Torrential Gearhulk, and have all instant speed removal, card draw, and permission, with possibly some number of Fumigate somewhere in the 75. To me that seems like the U/W control deck to start testing.
Also, Shaheen is crazy. Double black on turn 2, with double white and double blue on turn 5 is never going to work with the mana we have, unless I'm missing something. (would need 20 black sources, 15 white sources, and 15 blue sources, or there about)
Oath of Liliana into Nahiri just sounds much more back breaking against aggro than Dovin anyways, not to mention threatens to end the game when she ultimates.
Standard: BG Golgari Midrange
Modern: U Merfolk GWUBR 5 Color Humans UBW Esper Gifts GW Bogles
Also I'd still be playing Anguished Unmaking, but I rather have Nahiri remove Fevered Visions than paying three life when their deck is beating and burning my face in.
Standard: BG Golgari Midrange
Modern: U Merfolk GWUBR 5 Color Humans UBW Esper Gifts GW Bogles
Valesantafe, just a few comments on your deck that I'm sure others can jump in on...
The thing you have to remember when developing a deck for a new rotation is that old decks used cards available, and they may not be the best choice now. For example, just because Seth Manfield ran 4 Anticipates doesn't mean that it's a good choice - it was just the best at the time. If you look at the Shaheen Soorani list I posted yesterday, he actually runs 4 Take Inventory and no Anticipate. Where I play, it's far better to take your early turns killing things (Murder, Grasp of Darkness, Essence Extraction) than holding up the blue mana for an early draw spell, so for me, I prefer Glimmer of Genius. I'm also a fan of a single Confirm Suspicions - it gives an extra counterspell, but also gives 3 cards when you have spare mana.
Cataclysmic Gearhulk I think is a bit of a mistake, and shouldn't be here over certainly the blue one, and maybe even the black one. Yes, it does a good Tragic Arrogance impression, but the key difference between TA and Gearhulk is that the opponent gets to choose what they keep.
Finally, as I mentioned in one of my last few posts, I've not been a fan of Dovin Baan. He's only card advantage while you have enough loyalty to tick him down, whereas Sorin, Ob Nix and Jace all give it to you as you tick up. Therefore, I'm currently trying 2 Sorin and a Dovin Baan, rather than 1/2 the other way. Jace may be a good inclusion though - I'll have to try putting him in and seeing what happens.
All in all, I think that between you, I and Draw_gone, we are getting close to a list that could be pretty handy, and should just need some tweaks as the format develops. However, I am fully expecting to have a hard time for the first month or so, as the aggro decks will be out in full force, and aggro always stands a better chance against control. I find that it's a high chance to lose game 1, then if we stack the removal game 2 (but rarely, if ever remove draw spells when sideboarding) we can just kill everything, wait for them to run out of steam, then turn the corner with a Gearhulk and swing in for the win.
It almost seems to me that a mono-black control list, with splashes solely for Fumigate, the planeswalkers and draw spells could be the way to move...
3 Reflector Mage
1 Filigree Familiar
3 Spell Queller
2 Cloudblazer
1 Combustible Gearhulk
Planeswalker (9)
3 Nahiri, the Harbinger
3 Dovin Baan
3 Chandra, Torch of Defiance
Instant (6)
2 Unsubstantiate
2 Revolutionary Rebuff
2 Skywhaler's Shot
Sorcery (9)
2 Radiant Flames
3 Declaration in Stone
1 Collective Defiance
1 Fumigate
2 Incendiary Flow
1 Stasis Snare
Land (25)
4 Port Town
4 Spirebluff Canal
3 Inspiring Vantage
2 Evolving Wilds
2 Plains
3 Island
4 Wandering Fumarole
1 Mountain
2 Prairie Stream
1 Radiant Flames
1 Linvala, the Preserver
2 Sphinx of the Final Word
3 Ceremonious Rejection
1 Reflector Mage
1 Dovin Baan
1 Revolutionary Rebuff
3 Fragmentize
2 Gisela, the Broken Blade
4 Prairie Stream
4 Shambling Vent
4 Evolving Wilds
Rather than the new Kaladesh's lands. I dont like Aether Hub on this deck cause I don't wanna stuck on they with no Glimmer on t4
There's some comments on his posting over the choice of 4 Torrential Gearhulks, and whether a 2/2 split with Noxious is better, but I can see the appeal to basically increasing all your counters and all your removal by 4... Also, I'm not the biggest fan of Liliana here. Yes, she has the potential to take over the late game, and possibility to return Gearhulks, but otherwise she's just a removal spell for 3. Maybe could be better to add something else here, like Essence Extraction, 4th copies of Murder or Ruinous Path, maybe Engulf the Shore/Flaying Tendrils for the anticipation of aggro, or just more draw/counters...
4 Choked Estuary
4 Sunken Hollow
4 Submerged Boneyard
2 Blighted Fen
1 Aether Hub
8 Swamp
3 Island
4 Grasp of Darkness
3 Transgress the Mind
3 Murder
3 Ruinous Path
Counters (6)
4 Scatter to the Winds
2 Summary Dismissal
3 Anticipate
3 Glimmer of Genius
1 Confirm Suspicions
Walkers and win-cons (8)
1 Jace, Unraveler of Secrets
1 Ob Nixilis Reignited
2 Liliana, the Last Hope
4 Torrential Gearhulk
I also think than Liliana is good, but I could cut her and add another things as you say!
4x Aether Hub
4x Evolving Wilds
4x Island
2x Plains
2x Port Town
3x Prairie Stream
4x Shambling Vent
2x Sunken Hollow
1x Swamp
Creature (4)
4x Torrential Gearhulk
Enchantment (2)
2x Stasis Snare
3x Anguished Unmaking
3x Anticipate
2x Blessed Alliance
3x Glimmer of Genius
2x Immolating Glare
3x Negate
3x Scatter to the Winds
3x Skywhaler's Shot
1x Summary Dismissal
Sorcery (5)
1x Declaration in Stone
1x Fragmentize
3x Fumigate
1x Dispel
2x Fragmentize
4x Gideon, Ally of Zendikar
4x Spell Queller
1x Summary Dismissal
3x Transgress the Mind
UR Blue-Red Control
Modern:
UBR Grixis Control
UWR Jeskai Control
The Esper manabase feels a bit clunky but I'm currently here:
3 Choked Estuary
2 Concealed Courtyard
3 Aether hub
3 Island
2 Plains
2 Port Town
2 Prairie stream
3 Shambling Vent
3 Sunken Hollow
3 Swamp
Creature
2 Catacylsmic Gearhulk
2 Noxious Gearhulk
3 Torrential Gerhulk
3 Ruinous Path
3 Transgress the mind
Instant
2 Anguished Unmaking
3 Grasp of Darkness
2 Anticpate
3 Glimmer of Genius
2 Negate
3 Spell Shrivel
2 Insidous Will
Planeswalker
2 Ob Nixilis Reignited
2 Sorin Grim Nemisis
2 Ceremonious rejection
2 Gonti, lord of Luxary
3 Kambal, Consul of Allocation
2 Linvala the preserver
3 Fumigate
3 Fragmentize
No love for Saheeli Rai ? Her -2 a Reflector Mage is fun, especially with Authority of the Consuls in play.
Jokes aside, I am looking for a UW base and hoping to add a 3rd color - although not Esper, as I don't have a zillion Lilianas to splash around decks (the ones I have are in Jund Delirium) and am NOT buying MORE.
Phew..I thought the rule round here was "I HAVE to play all Planeswalkers, regardless of synergy in the deck or not".
If that was the case I would cram Chandra, Pyrogenius in LOL. But I like your suggestion..
I didn't say it's bad, the card is awesome! But I think you could cut off instead of some removal if you don't have the money for the Lilis! If I would have the money I would buy it, no doubts! Sorry if my point was confused
what do you think of Aether Theorist?
Theorycrafting: it seems like it would work amazingly with aether hub and other cards post board.
I'm considering going down to 24 lands for it... but I'm unsure if that's correct.
Twitter: twitter.com/axmanonline
Stream: twitch.tv/axman
Current Decks
Modern: Affinity
Standard: BW Control
Legacy: Death and Taxes :symw::symr:
Vintage: NA
I'm sorry, but this statement has been rattling around in my brain all day. You don't see a solid reason to put blue in a control deck? Really?
Traditionally, starfish type creatures have not seen play in standard. but with energy... it seems interesting.
Twitter: twitter.com/axmanonline
Stream: twitch.tv/axman
Current Decks
Modern: Affinity
Standard: BW Control
Legacy: Death and Taxes :symw::symr:
Vintage: NA
Blue will be good for control in this format, but I don't think splashing it is worth stretching the manabase. In my opinion, either go for blue or don't. I like my U/W control, and I like by B/W control. But I don't see gaining enough from including a third color to justify messing with the mana.
People say "the mana's not that bad" in 3 colors, but either combination has all of the tools without a third color. It's just plain unnecessary to risk a game on color screw.
http://forums.mtgsalvation.com/showthread.php?p=11439737#post11439737
Reality is only what man allows it to be. Few shape it so that many may accept it.
4 Reflector Mage
4 Cloudblazer
1 Linvala, the Preserver
Spells:23
2 Essence Flux
3 Select for Inspection
3 Blessed Alliance
2 Declaration in Stone
3 Gideon's Reproach
2 Horribly Awry
2 Dovin Baan
2 Gideon, Ally of Zendikar
3 Glimmer of Genius
1 Insidious Will
4 Aether Hub
6 Island
6 Plains
4 Port Town
4 Prairie Stream
Week 1 filled with aggro, i find this to be able to battle that. It runs nicly, but been changing around the main baord to find the best combination not sure what works best in main vs side, lot of great cards in the format for a control player. Tell me what you think?
I like it, but I still don't get the Spell Quellers in control lately. Baffles me.
Why in the world would you run Gideon's Reproach over Immolating Glare? I get that Reproach hits blockers, but are you really worried about blockers?
I also really don't like Horribly Awry. I'd much rather run Weak Leak (thanks to whoever called it this earlier in the thread, that's my name for it from now on). It's much more versatile and relevant in more matchups.
I think Select for Inspection is better than I have been giving it credit for. I might start testing it.
If you're not running sweepers, you can get away with running spell quellers. They are good in a tempo deck like this and they fly which is HUGE right now.
http://forums.mtgsalvation.com/showthread.php?p=11439737#post11439737
Reality is only what man allows it to be. Few shape it so that many may accept it.
And Blessed Alliance is even better than Glare.
This is so true and I really felt the need to reiterate it. Maybe if the format slows down enough where a turn 2 or 3 plays aren't strictly necessary, it will be worth it to splash other colors, but in the beginning of Kaladesh 2 mana interactions are going to be very important. I'm really not sure what the aggro deck of choice will be, as last format rotation I saw humans everywhere leading up to the release being tested at various spots online, so it was really no surprise when the first SCG tournament had mono white, W/G, and W/U humans making about something like 60%-70% of the meta, but this rotation I don't think will be quite like that. Every variation of burn, including blue and / or black as well as every flavor from hyper aggro to heavy control I've seen out there. I've seen humans, dwarves, equipment, artifacts, and vehicles all being used by mostly R/W for various aggro strategies. I've seen R/G energy strategies ranging from hyper aggro, to topping out with Aetherworks Marvel into Ulamog or Emrakul. I think the start of this format is going to be extremely volatile, so being able to interact early is going to be so very crucial for the first few weeks while the meta figures itself out.
That being said I really believe control is in a strong position. There is a lot of incidental life gain, mostly in white, so grinding opponents out of threats before turning the corner with enough life left to win is very doable. And the fact that Collected Company is gone has had a large impact. Going 1 for 1 against creatures actually slows an opponent down now, letting you get the heavier control engines online, whatever they may be, either something energy base, or planes walkers, or top curve creatures. Either way I think it's going to be an exciting release.